
LESSON 5 April 29 to May 5
"Watch ye therefore: for ye know
not when the master of the house
cometh, at even, or at midnight, or at
the cockcrowing, or in the morning:
lest coming suddenly he find you
sleeping" (Mark 13:35, 36).
This solemn appeal applies in a very
specific way to our days. It refers, not
to the physical appearance of Christ
at His second coming, but to the end
of the investigative judgment and the
time of grace. (See
Testimonies,
vol. 2, p. 190.) These events mark
the beginning of the time of trouble.
After that moment there will be no
more possibility of forgiveness and
acceptance by God.
"Solemn are the scenes connected
with the closing work of the
atonement. Momentous are the
interests involved therein. The
judgment is now passing in the
sanctuary above. For many years
this work has been in progress. Soon
—none know how soon—it will pass
to the cases of the living. In the awful
presence of God our lives are to come
up in review. At this time above all
others it behooves every soul to heed
the Saviour's admonition: 'Watch and
pray: for ye know not when the
time is.' Mark 13:33."—The
Great
Controversy,
p. 490.
We do not know when the
judgment will turn from the dead to
the living, but we know that when that
hour arrives, none need fear who are
abiding in Christ.
This week and next we will study
one of the most difficult periods the
church of God will pass through. By
that time most Bible prophecies will
have been fulfilled, the proclamation
of the gospel will have been finished,
the shaking and the sealing will have
occurred, and the latter rain will
have fallen.
During the time of trouble the seven
last plagues fall on the impenitent
while the children of God are
protected. The four angels have
released the winds of strife, giving
free rein to nature and men to cast
off the restraint of law. The plagues
descend unmixed with God's mercy
and without the restricting influence
of the Holy Spirit.
The persecution, which will have
commenced during the time of
probation with the imposing of the
Sunday laws, will become more severe
during this period, reaching maximum
fierceness with the death decree.
But that decree will not be carried
out, because at the date set for the
execution, God will liberate His
people amidst a tremendous display
of natural phenomena and fearful
manifestations of His anger. Under
the sixth and seventh plagues
Armageddon occurs.
Although the faithful will not suffer
the plagues and will be miraculously
fed, guarded, and protected, they will
nevertheless go through a double
ordeal: (1) physical hardship because
the persecution will force them to
flee from all centers of population;
(2) mental anguish, because of their
concern about the forgiveness of all
their sins. But finally peace and
tranquillity take the place of anxiety.
Only those who have received the
refreshing and have been sealed are
in a condition to pass safely through
this stormy hour, standing firmly
to welcome the Lord Jesus at His
second coming.
DAILY HIGHLIGHTS
1.
Definition
(Dan. 12:1)
2.
The Time: Beginning and End
(Rev. 22:11)
3.
Jacob's Dramatic Experience
(Gen. 32:24-29)
4.
Mental and Physical Anguish
(Jer. 30:7)
5.
Purpose
(Mal. 3:2, 3)
6.
Our Only Safety During the
Trouble (Rev. 3:18, 19)